Asbestos ABC's - The Basics

What Is Asbestos?
Asbestos is a natural mined mineral. Its very nature, long, thin cotton-like fibers, make it a wonderfully useful material, but also make it deadly. The fact that it can be spun and woven just like cotton only served to ensure its widespread use. Prior to 1989, asbestos was used in drywall joint compound, textured wall treatments, vinyl floor tiles, ceiling tiles, roofing materials, including shingles, siding, certain types of countertops, concrete, bricks, and pipe and electrical insulation, in addition to many uses outside of construction.
Asbestos is still in use as a building material in China, India and other countries, but it has been banned for most uses in the United States since the late 1980's when its phase out began.
What Should You Do About It?
The form it is in, such as asbestos siding, may not harmful. However, the mere suspicion of it can scare away prospective buyers or kill your deal. Therefore, even if you only suspect that asbestos may be present, get it tested for and if present, get it remediated. Because asbestos was so widely used, many remediation services are available, but it must be done by a licensed contractor who specializes in asbestos removal.
There are two basic ways of dealing with asbestos: Removing it or sealing it so it cannot become airborne. Removal by a contractor licensed by the federal or state EPA is the gold standard. However, like many gold-standards, it is expensive. Sealing costs much less and may be appropriate under certain circumstances.
I would definitely not recommend this as a do-it-yourself project.
REMEMBER: Because of asbestos' hazard to health, once you are aware of it, you should get it remediated. Of course, once you are aware of a its presence, you will need to disclose it. This is another reason to correct problems before putting your house on the market, if it is gone, it can no longer be a problem.